“I want you to go out there and start knocking on doors and talking to people and telling people, ‘This has to happen!’ ” Kerry said at a forum hosted by environmentalists, veterans and others Wednesday.

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“You know, if tea-party folks go out there and get angry because they think their taxes are too high, for God’s sakes, a lot of citizens ought to be angry about the fact that they’re being killed and our planet is being injured by what is happening on a daily basis by the way we provide our power and our fuel and by the old practices we have,” Kerry said.

He added: “That’s something worth getting angry about. And I think it’s time for people to do that.”

But while emissions caps have been embraced by the White House and Democratic leaders on Capitol Hill, prospects for climate legislation remain highly uncertain. Democrats are still reeling from Republican Scott Brown’s stunning win in Kerry’s home state, and they’re focusing heavily on the economy and jobs.

Kerry and other backers say the climate bill would help on both fronts (and that doing nothing ultimately costs more), but Republican and industry opponents of cap-and-trade say it’s a job-killer.

Beth Viola, who advised Kerry in his 2004 presidential run, said, “I think [Kerry] is fiery because he feels really passionately about the fact that we have a real global crisis — the economic impacts as well as the environmental impacts are potentially quite significant.

“I suspect he is probably pretty anxious to see people make the case for the legislation as loudly as those who are making the case against it,” added Viola, who worked on environmental issues in the Clinton White House and is now a senior adviser with Holland & Knight.

Kerry has an aggressive agenda for his committee this year. But the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee, who was criticized by the GOP that year for his lack of big-ticket legislative accomplishments, has zeroed in on climate change.

The 66-year-old senator sharpened his tone in several ways during his speech on Wednesday. While he laid out familiar arguments that climate and energy legislation will help expand U.S. alternative-energy sectors and boost private investment, he also injected a hint of populism.

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“Does it require a company to lay out some money for new technology? You’re damn right it does, but isn’t that what we should be doing to reduce pollution and clean up the air?” he said.

But Kerry’s task is complex because he has concluded that winning emissions limits will require several concessions to industry and Republicans. The plan he is crafting with Graham and Lieberman will likely contain an expansion of offshore drilling and large new subsidies for building nuclear power plants.

Indeed, Graham on Wednesday emphasized the need for a business-friendly approach.

“The climate change legislation passed by the House of Representatives and Senate Environment and Public Works Committee is too onerous on business and does not enjoy bipartisan support,” Graham said.

“My goal is to continue working with Sens. Kerry, Lieberman and my Senate colleagues to create a new pathway forward that focuses on a more robust energy security package and a more business-friendly climate legislation,” he continued.

Many large environmental groups have signaled that they’re open to compromises to win long-sought limits on greenhouse gas emissions.

But compounding Kerry's challenge is that a number of centrist Senate Democrats – including Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) and Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) – want the chamber to take up a package of energy measures that omits emissions caps. They’re eyeing a bill the Energy and Natural Resources Committee approved in June.